Rape, and other forms of violence and abuse such as birth control sabotage or pregnancy coercion, are acts that seek to strip power from women and inhibit their decisionmaking. This election-year, where are the real conversations about violence against women, not just idiotic statements about rape?

“Abortion exceptions” are human rights violations and bad public health policy. Any administration that banned abortion “with exceptions” would force every single woman who needs an abortion to live a nightmare scenario: hope that you qualify and can actually get an abortion, or be denied access altogether. Today, all over the country, many women are already living that nightmare.

Global health did not come up explicitly in the final presidential debate, which focused on U.S. foreign policy. Both candidates, however, made reference to women’s issues, primarily voicing support for women’s empowerment in the Middle East.

We continue to push President Barack Obama to recognize trafficking for what it is and not get mixed up in the politics of advocates who are not as focused on addressing the climate of fear and coercion endured by so many workers around the world.